TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Ken Lawson, the secretary for the Florida Dept. of Economic Opportunity who came under fire as Floridians struggled to get unemployment benefits during the pandemic, is resigning.

Lawson did not give a specific reason, but said his resignation, effective at the end of the day Tuesday, was "in the spirit of turning the page and moving forward."

"Over the last nine years, it has been an honor to serve the people of Florida, Lawson said in the letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis. "I am grateful for the privileges I have been given at DEO, Visit Florida and (Florida Dept. of Business and Professional Regulations)."

Lawson was secretary of DEO as the pandemic began and hundreds of thousands sought unemployment benefits in the state. The system to apply became overwhelmed and crashed frequently, and frustrated applicants spent hours on the phone trying to reach DEO staff for assistance. Then, there were issues with benefits being paid out properly, if at all. 

Lawson apologized for all of the issues, which critics said were inevitable because of the way the unemployment benefit system was designed years ago. They pointed to a 2019 inspector general report that outlined hundreds of issues. Lawson was DEO chief at the time of the report.

In April, Gov. DeSantis sidelined Lawson and tapped Management Services Secretary Jonathan Satter to take over DEO's coronavirus response.

Lawson, however, was still in charge of other aspects of the agency, which also handles business resources, community planning and assistance.

DeSantis tapped Lawson to be DEO secretary in 2019. Before that, he was president and CEO of Visit Florida, and secretary of Florida DBPR under Gov. Scott.